Recovering Carceral Feminist-Ask Me How!
@leighgoodmark.bsky.social
Professor at Maryland Carey Law, director of Gender, Prison, and Trauma Clinic, author of Imperfect Victims: Criminalized Survivors and the Promise of Abolition Feminism and Decriminalizing Domestic Violence (UC Press). She/her/mom. leighgoodmark.com
Pinned
The criminal legal system is the primary response to gender-based violence in the US, but victims of violence who don’t conform to stereotypes about “perfect” victims are punished harshly by that system every day-come for the anger-inducing stories, stay for the abolition feminism.
Reposted by Recovering Carceral Feminist-Ask Me How!
Dorothea Lange. Kern County, California (1938)
February 5, 2026 at 1:04 AM
Dorothea Lange. Kern County, California (1938)
"The violence we experience inside is not a different or separate kind of violence. It is gender-based violence, and it's enabled by your silence. So let me ask again: Ain't I a woman? And if I am, then where are you?" My brilliant friend, @kwanetaharris.bsky.social:
Ain't We Women, Too?
For many incarcerated women, the state is their abuser, but the gender-based violence we experience behind bars goes ignored.
www.theflytrapmedia.com
February 4, 2026 at 4:04 PM
"The violence we experience inside is not a different or separate kind of violence. It is gender-based violence, and it's enabled by your silence. So let me ask again: Ain't I a woman? And if I am, then where are you?" My brilliant friend, @kwanetaharris.bsky.social:
I love these emails. Which character in Decriminalizing Domestic Violence do you think suggested real screen potential?
January 29, 2026 at 2:55 PM
I love these emails. Which character in Decriminalizing Domestic Violence do you think suggested real screen potential?
Reposted by Recovering Carceral Feminist-Ask Me How!
This five year old is still in jail
January 27, 2026 at 1:38 PM
This five year old is still in jail
When I was asked to sign an amicus brief in U.S. v. Rahimi, I reflexively said yes--no one who uses violence should have a gun. Then I remembered that the criminal legal system would enforce the prohibition. #Abolitionfeminism means saying no to the criminal system. My latest @socres.org:
January 26, 2026 at 9:57 PM
When I was asked to sign an amicus brief in U.S. v. Rahimi, I reflexively said yes--no one who uses violence should have a gun. Then I remembered that the criminal legal system would enforce the prohibition. #Abolitionfeminism means saying no to the criminal system. My latest @socres.org:
Client's application for a pardon of her federal conviction was denied (the judge felt so strongly that the client deserved mercy that he advocated against her deportation after her conviction). Apparently we didn't submit the one thing that the Administration requires before considering a pardon.
January 21, 2026 at 3:31 PM
Client's application for a pardon of her federal conviction was denied (the judge felt so strongly that the client deserved mercy that he advocated against her deportation after her conviction). Apparently we didn't submit the one thing that the Administration requires before considering a pardon.
There are no words. #AbolishFamilyPolicing
CPS Stole My Children - Toia Potts - Inquest
When I was falsely accused of abuse, North Carolina took away my sons. I was exonerated but I still may never see them again.
inquest.org
January 17, 2026 at 4:18 PM
There are no words. #AbolishFamilyPolicing
One of the highlights of being associate dean for research at Maryland Carey Law is welcoming scholars from across the country (including @ahoagfordjour.bsky.social, @profshirleylin.bsky.social, and @susanmcmahon.bsky.social). Looking forward to this semester's Legal Theory Workshops!
January 12, 2026 at 6:19 PM
One of the highlights of being associate dean for research at Maryland Carey Law is welcoming scholars from across the country (including @ahoagfordjour.bsky.social, @profshirleylin.bsky.social, and @susanmcmahon.bsky.social). Looking forward to this semester's Legal Theory Workshops!
Kim Hricko, @kwanetaharris.bsky.social, and I discuss the impact of true crime on criminalized survivors (spoiler: it's devastating) in "The True Harms of True Crime." Find it here: wjlgs.law.wisc.edu/2026/volume-.... Special thanks to @rlopez.bsky.social, who is the godmother of this piece.
Volume XL, No. 1 – Spring 2025
Articles “The True Harms of True Crime” by Leigh Goodmark, Kim Hricko, and Kwaneta Harris “Undocumented Eldercare, LLC” by Kit Johnson “Creatively Concealed but Still Persistently Pervasive: Racial St...
wjlgs.law.wisc.edu
January 9, 2026 at 6:38 PM
Kim Hricko, @kwanetaharris.bsky.social, and I discuss the impact of true crime on criminalized survivors (spoiler: it's devastating) in "The True Harms of True Crime." Find it here: wjlgs.law.wisc.edu/2026/volume-.... Special thanks to @rlopez.bsky.social, who is the godmother of this piece.
I mean, I expected this result. Economic security decreases intimate partner violence. Give money to the people that need it-not to police and prisons. #AbolitionFeminismNow
Federal EITC Has Unexpected Result, Researchers Say – It Decreases Domestic Violence - UConn Today
'Even if you don’t care about the human value of reducing this, there are efficiency gains in handling it more effectively - and I think most of us do ...
today.uconn.edu
December 23, 2025 at 1:20 AM
I mean, I expected this result. Economic security decreases intimate partner violence. Give money to the people that need it-not to police and prisons. #AbolitionFeminismNow
This doesn’t bode well.
December 19, 2025 at 7:24 PM
This doesn’t bode well.
If I were supreme ruler of all things lexical (a word I just looked up), I would outlaw the use of the word "unfortunately." I have spoken.
December 17, 2025 at 4:40 PM
If I were supreme ruler of all things lexical (a word I just looked up), I would outlaw the use of the word "unfortunately." I have spoken.
Preventing harm before it happens, providing safe and non-judgmental spaces in which people who are considering harm can get help without requiring them to be criminalized--this is exactly the kind of thing we should be doing, and House of Ruth is doing it in Maryland.
A New Domestic Violence Hotline Aims to Stop People From Doing Harm
“Being able to talk someone off the ledge, I think it would prevent a lot of cases like mine,” one man said.
truthout.org
December 15, 2025 at 3:29 PM
Preventing harm before it happens, providing safe and non-judgmental spaces in which people who are considering harm can get help without requiring them to be criminalized--this is exactly the kind of thing we should be doing, and House of Ruth is doing it in Maryland.
Today this is a baking account. Chunky Lola cookies (Flour Bakery recipe), chocolate peppermint brownie cookies, and eggnog snickerdoodles (@nytimes.com). Snow outside, cookies inside.
December 14, 2025 at 5:13 PM
Today this is a baking account. Chunky Lola cookies (Flour Bakery recipe), chocolate peppermint brownie cookies, and eggnog snickerdoodles (@nytimes.com). Snow outside, cookies inside.
I’ve been doing this for more than 30 years, and if I ever stop being nervous before I walk into court, I’ll know it’s time to stop.
December 12, 2025 at 2:04 PM
I’ve been doing this for more than 30 years, and if I ever stop being nervous before I walk into court, I’ll know it’s time to stop.
Today's fun fact: if "blue" "progressive" Maryland was a country, we would incarcerate more women per capita than 153 countries, including Canada, China, Argentina, and Venezuela, and would be tied with the Russian Federation. #TheMoreYouKnow www.prisonpolicy.org/global/women...
States of Women's Incarceration: The Global Context 2025
Women's incarceration in every region of the United States is out of step with the rest of the world.
www.prisonpolicy.org
December 11, 2025 at 9:02 PM
Today's fun fact: if "blue" "progressive" Maryland was a country, we would incarcerate more women per capita than 153 countries, including Canada, China, Argentina, and Venezuela, and would be tied with the Russian Federation. #TheMoreYouKnow www.prisonpolicy.org/global/women...
As a pragmatic abolitionist, I'll use any tool I can to get people out of prison. But laws decreasing sentences for/allowing for resentencing of criminalized survivors are not everything we need to prevent injustice. We need for survivors not to be prosecuted at all. Mine @truthout.org.
New Pennsylvania Law Seeks to Aid Abuse Survivors Who Resist — But Is It Enough?
Laws to help “criminalized survivors” who fight back against their abusers often merely reduce their prison time.
truthout.org
December 5, 2025 at 1:24 AM
As a pragmatic abolitionist, I'll use any tool I can to get people out of prison. But laws decreasing sentences for/allowing for resentencing of criminalized survivors are not everything we need to prevent injustice. We need for survivors not to be prosecuted at all. Mine @truthout.org.
Supporting Our Inside-Out Prison Writing Community chuffed.org/project/1574...
Supporting Our Inside-Out Prison Writing Community
We are an inside-outside collective of writers, editors and journalists who support the writing of incarcerated people across the country.
chuffed.org
December 2, 2025 at 4:27 PM
Supporting Our Inside-Out Prison Writing Community chuffed.org/project/1574...
Think about this program for Giving Tuesday.
This Program Gives Direct Cash Support to Incarcerated Women
The Community Love Fund is a guaranteed income program built and run by abolitionist women.
truthout.org
December 1, 2025 at 2:57 PM
Think about this program for Giving Tuesday.
So far during the parade, my kids have booed the NYPD, asked why we continue to glorify the (whiteness of the) 50s, and talked about union busting during a Starbucks commercial. The kids are all right.
November 27, 2025 at 2:47 PM
So far during the parade, my kids have booed the NYPD, asked why we continue to glorify the (whiteness of the) 50s, and talked about union busting during a Starbucks commercial. The kids are all right.
Not surprising, but disappointing. Mayor Mamdani, call me--let's talk! nypost.com/2025/11/19/u...
Zohran Mamdani now says NYPD should respond to domestic violence incidents, backtracking on past controversial statements
“That has not been part of the proposal we have put forward over the course of the campaign,” said Mamdani on Wednesday when asked if his new Department of Community Safety (DCS) would …
nypost.com
November 20, 2025 at 4:35 PM
Not surprising, but disappointing. Mayor Mamdani, call me--let's talk! nypost.com/2025/11/19/u...
One of my clients died yesterday. She was an absolutely lovely woman, full of faith and joy and light. She cared deeply about the people around her. She was a source of encouragement and support to the women she was incarcerated with. She was 51 years old and had spent 28 years in prison.
November 11, 2025 at 3:57 PM
One of my clients died yesterday. She was an absolutely lovely woman, full of faith and joy and light. She cared deeply about the people around her. She was a source of encouragement and support to the women she was incarcerated with. She was 51 years old and had spent 28 years in prison.
To the guy spotted reading Imperfect Victims on the B train last week: I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. And I hope they liked the flowers. ❤️
November 6, 2025 at 12:42 AM
To the guy spotted reading Imperfect Victims on the B train last week: I can’t tell you how much I appreciate it. And I hope they liked the flowers. ❤️
Reposted by Recovering Carceral Feminist-Ask Me How!
This is news to me, a Jew who doesn't feel like I have lost anything because of Zohran's victory.
My goodness. Imagine showing everyone how much your brain is just absolutely pickled in fear and bigotry.
My goodness. Imagine showing everyone how much your brain is just absolutely pickled in fear and bigotry.
Bari Weiss's website is being about as normal as I expected
www.thefp.com/p/mamdanis-r...
www.thefp.com/p/mamdanis-r...
November 5, 2025 at 5:05 PM
This is news to me, a Jew who doesn't feel like I have lost anything because of Zohran's victory.
My goodness. Imagine showing everyone how much your brain is just absolutely pickled in fear and bigotry.
My goodness. Imagine showing everyone how much your brain is just absolutely pickled in fear and bigotry.